How to File a DBA in New Jersey
In New Jersey a DBA is a trade name filed with the county clerk, or an alternate name an LLC or corporation registers with the state for $50. No newspaper notice. Attorney review available.
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Introduction
In New Jersey, a DBA is the public registration that lets a person or business use a name different from its legal name, and it creates no separate legal entity. New Jersey splits the filing by who is filing. A sole proprietor or a general partnership registers a trade name (an assumed name) with the county clerk of each county where it does business, under N.J.S.A. 56:1-2. A New Jersey LLC, corporation, or limited partnership instead registers an alternate name with the Division of Revenue and Enterprise Services on Form C-150G, and the state filing fee is $50 (N.J.S.A. 14A:2-2.1 for corporations and N.J.S.A. 42:2C-9 for LLCs). The county trade name fee is set by each county and is commonly around $50, so confirm the amount with your county clerk. New Jersey does not require you to publish a DBA notice in a newspaper for either path. A registered alternate name is effective for five years and may be renewed for successive five-year periods using Form C-150R; a county trade name certificate has no fixed expiration term and stays in effect until it is withdrawn. Filing a DBA does not create a corporation or an LLC, does not shield the owner from personal liability, and gives no trademark or exclusive right to the name. DocDraft builds your New Jersey trade name or alternate name filing from your facts, with attorney review available before you file.
Key Things to Know
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In New Jersey a DBA is called a trade name or an alternate name. It is a public registration that lets you use a business name different from the legal name; it creates no separate legal entity.
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New Jersey splits the filing by filer type. A sole proprietor or general partnership registers a trade name with the county clerk of each county where it does business (N.J.S.A. 56:1-2).
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A New Jersey LLC, corporation, or limited partnership registers an alternate name with the Division of Revenue and Enterprise Services on Form C-150G. The state fee is $50 (N.J.S.A. 14A:2-2.1; N.J.S.A. 42:2C-9).
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The county trade name fee is set by each county and is commonly around $50, so confirm the current amount with your county clerk. The $50 state fee applies to the entity alternate name.
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New Jersey does not require newspaper publication of a DBA for either the county trade name or the state alternate name.
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A registered alternate name is effective for five years and may be renewed for successive five-year periods using Form C-150R. A county trade name certificate has no fixed expiration and stays in effect until it is withdrawn.
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A DBA gives you no ownership of or exclusive right to the name, and it does not limit your liability. A sole proprietor with a trade name is still personally responsible for the business.
Key decisions before you file
Before you file a DBA (Doing Business As) in New Jersey, a few decisions shape the document: which option to choose and what each one means. The DBA (Doing Business As) guide walks through them.
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New Jersey Requirements for DBA (Doing Business As)
New Jersey splits the DBA filing. A sole proprietor or general partnership registers a trade name with the county clerk of each county where it does business (N.J.S.A. 56:1-2), while an LLC, corporation, or limited partnership registers a state alternate name.
An LLC, corporation, or limited partnership registers an alternate name with the Division of Revenue and Enterprise Services on Form C-150G. The state filing fee is 50 dollars (N.J.S.A. 14A:2-2.1; N.J.S.A. 42:2C-9).
The county trade name fee is set by each county and is commonly around 50 dollars, so confirm the current amount with your county clerk. The 50 dollar state fee applies to the entity alternate name.
The exact trade name or alternate name to register. It must not include a word such as Corporation, Incorporated, LLC, or Limited unless the registrant is that type of entity.
The full legal name and address of the registrant, the registrant type, and each owner. For a general partnership, every partner is listed on the trade name certificate.
New Jersey does not require you to publish a DBA notice in a newspaper for either the county trade name or the state alternate name.
A state alternate name registration is effective for five years and may be renewed for successive five-year periods using Form C-150R. A county trade name certificate has no fixed expiration and stays in effect until it is withdrawn.
A New Jersey DBA is only a name registration. It creates no separate legal entity, gives no exclusive right or trademark in the name, and does not limit the personal liability of a sole proprietor or general partner.
Frequently Asked Questions
In New Jersey a DBA is either a trade name or an alternate name, a public filing that lets a person or company do business under a name different from its legal name. A sole proprietor or general partnership files a trade name with the county clerk (N.J.S.A. 56:1-2); an LLC or corporation registers an alternate name with the Division of Revenue and Enterprise Services. It connects the name to you on the public record. It does not create a separate legal entity, protect the name, or limit your liability.
In New Jersey a DBA (a trade name or alternate name) is only a name registration; it creates no new entity and gives no liability protection. A New Jersey LLC is a separate legal entity you form by filing a Certificate of Formation with the Division of Revenue and Enterprise Services, and it shields the owners' personal assets. You can have both, since an existing New Jersey LLC can register an alternate name to run a brand under another name. Choose based on whether you need liability protection or just a name.
It depends on who is filing. In New Jersey a sole proprietor or general partnership files a trade name with the county clerk of each county where it does business (N.J.S.A. 56:1-2); that fee is set by the county and is commonly around $50, so confirm it with your county clerk. A New Jersey LLC, corporation, or limited partnership registers an alternate name with the Division of Revenue and Enterprise Services on Form C-150G for a $50 state fee.
No. New Jersey does not require you to publish a notice of your DBA in a newspaper, whether you file a county trade name as a sole proprietor or partnership or register a state alternate name as an LLC or corporation. This is different from some other states that require a newspaper notice after filing. In New Jersey you complete the county trade name certificate or the state alternate name registration and no publication step follows.
A New Jersey alternate name registered by an LLC or corporation is effective for five years and may be renewed for successive five-year periods using Form C-150R, filed with the Division of Revenue and Enterprise Services before it expires. A county trade name certificate filed by a sole proprietor or general partnership has no fixed expiration term and stays in effect until it is withdrawn. Track the five-year date for an alternate name so the registration does not lapse.
You generally need a New Jersey DBA when you regularly do business under a name that is different from your legal name. A sole proprietor or general partnership doing business under an assumed name must file a trade name with the county clerk (N.J.S.A. 56:1-2). An LLC or corporation that wants to operate a brand under a name other than its registered legal name registers an alternate name with the state. Banks in New Jersey also commonly ask for the filing before opening an account in the business name.
No. A New Jersey trade name or alternate name is a public record connecting a name to the person or entity using it, but it gives no ownership of or exclusive right to the name, so another business could use a similar name. It also creates no separate legal entity, so a sole proprietor filing a trade name remains personally liable for the business. For exclusive name rights you would seek a trademark, and for liability protection you would form an LLC or corporation.
Yes. In New Jersey an LLC, corporation, or limited partnership registers a DBA as an alternate name with the Division of Revenue and Enterprise Services on Form C-150G, for a $50 state fee. The entity keeps its legal name and gains the right to do business under the alternate name once it is registered. The registration is effective for five years and renews using Form C-150R. County trade name filing, by contrast, is the path for sole proprietors and general partnerships.